How is the microphone audio quality?

Some lighthearted indie pop

Thanks for the link

Do these ever go on sale new?

  While it is one DAC, it does have 8 channels I believe. 

  You can make a custom cable for it very easily

  I've only heard the PHA-3, but looking at the reviews, the Geek Out 1000 seems to be pretty good. Have you thought about a full size desktop amp/dac? It might be a better deal for the money if you already have a Geek Out 1000. 

The ZX1 does not output native DSD, according to my PHA-3. The Hi-rez light is on, but not the DSD light.

Since the ZX1 uses the digital amp system, I think they replace the DAC with some sort of DSP.

  The PHA-3's ES9018 DAC has 8 channels. It could be using four channels for the balanced mode, though I have no way to confirm that. 

One feature I really like are the Senseme channels. It does a fair job of finding slow or fast songs depending on the "mood" you select. 

  Drive-By Truckers: English Oceans One of the great modern rock bands, Drive-By Trucker's newest album keeps the song writing tight. A nice album for sunny fall days.     Cayetana: Nervous Like Me Fun pop punk.

Did he happen to get the SRS-X9? If so, how is it?

With all of this cable talk, don't forget there is a rather plain looking cable from the headphone's input jack to the driver. It might be something that modders will look into upgrading, maybe even completely bypassing the audio jack.